Bujar Amidovski and Mark Murphy have been selected as ECHL All-Stars! Goaltender Bujar Amidovski and left wing Mark Murphy have been selected as the Trenton Titans' first representatives for the East Coast Hockey League's All-Star Game. Amidovski will be appearing in his second All-Star game, having been selected as starting goaltender for the Southern Conference squad last season with the Louisiana IceGators. He has been a key factor in the Titans' inaugural season success, posting a 11-7-1 record through December 31st with a 2.11 goals against average and a .930 save percentage.

Mark Murphy is one of six rookies selected to the Northern Conference All-Star squad. He stepped up as Trenton's offensive leader in the absence of Cail MacLean, and has notched 14 goals with 13 assists in 28 games through December 31st. The All-Star Game will be played on Wednesday, January 19th at the BI-LO Center in Greenville, South Carolina. For more information, check out our All-Star coverage.

The Titans had a December to remember with a 6-4 record! The Trenton Titans pulled together their first winning month in December (6-4) to improve to 14-12-2 on the season. As they did in previous months, the Titans opened the month with a loss: a 2-3 home heartbreaker to the Roanoke Express. Trenton rebounded the next night with a 2-0 Bujar Amidovski shutout of the Hampton Roads Admirals. However, the momentum was quickly lost as the Titans were shutuot 1-0 by the Dayton Bombers for their third game of December. Then, the Titans caught fire, winning the final three games of their six-game homestand to start December. Bujar Amidovski stood on his head in a 4-1 victory over the Wheeling Nailers (featuring a pair of Mike Mader power play goals), a 3-1 victory over the Roanoke Express, and a 4-1 win over the Toledo Storm.

The Titans hoped to continue their hot streak on the road, but dropped a 1-2 game against the Roanoke Express despite Bujar Amidovski's 36 saves. Trenton returned to Sovereign Bank Arena to extended their home winning streak to five games with a pair of narrow victories. Mark Murphy led the Titans to the first of those victories with the franchise's first hat trick en route to a 4-3 victory over the Dayton Bombers. A week later, Mike Hall scored a pair of goals including the shootout game-winner for a 5-4 victory over the Johnstown Chiefs. December ended on a downer with a 4-5 road loss against the Hampton Roads Admirals.

Bujar Amidovski has been selected as the Titanic's Titan of the Month for December. From the drop of the first puck, the Trenton Titans knew they could rely on Bujar Amidovski to guard their net. His reputation arrived in the city of Trenton long before he did. Bujar's performance in December was no exception: a deceptive 5-3 record, with a 2.13 goals against average and a .934 save percenatge. Though he began December with a shaky loss, Bujar rebounded with a four game winning streak, posting a .975 save percentage and allowing only three goals. He began the streak with a 37 save shutout of the Hampton Roads Admirals. The streak was snapped by a 1-2 loss at the Roanoke Express. Although Amidovski ended the month with two shaky performances, there is little doubt that he will provide exceptional goaltending for the Titans until he is recalled by the AHL's Philadelphia Phantoms. Expect to see Bujar in the NHL in the not so distant future!

The Unofficial Web Site's webmaster will finally get to see the Titans play! Forty-eight games later than I would have liked, I will finally get my chance to see the Trenton Titans in action! I knew it would be difficult to catch Trenton hockey games when I relocated from about two miles from the future site of Sovereign Bank Arena to Texas in 1996. Despite my devotion to the Titans, a 3000-mile round trip commute would be a bit rough. Likewise, airfare would get quite expensive. In the days before the ECHL released the 1999/2000 season schedule, I was optimistic that the Titans might make a road trip to either Arkansas or Louisiana to make a day trip from Texas a possibility. However, Birmingham, Alabama is the closest the schedule will bring the Titans to Texas this season (still a 1300-mile round trip).

A friend's Wedding gave me the perfect excuse to budget a return trip to New Jersey, but it came a month before the season began. For some reason, he wouldn't reschedule. The expense of that trip provided a strong case not to strain the budget with another NJ visit so soon. It quickly began to appear that I would not be able to see the Titans in their inaugural season unless an expedient and bountiful tax return funded an eleventh hour trip in the Spring. I can dream can't I?

Then, out of the blue, opportunity knocked! My wife's new job called for travel across the country for training. We decided that this would provide an opportunity for a discounted vacation together and I planned to join her to one or more of her destinations. As luck would have it, the training schedules called for her to visit Bethesda, Maryland for two weeks in February. Out came the ECHL schedule! To my delight, the Trenton Titans will be visiting the Richmond Renegades on the Saturday evening (February 12th) during her two-week trip. Only a two-hour (plus or minus) trip from Bethesda! And then I got greedy! With a Titans home game only a few hours away, I began planning a road trip to see them play the Johnstown Chiefs on February 16th.

While I don't expect to see too many friendly faces in Titans jerseys at Richmond, I hope to see many of the fans that have supported this site at the February 16th game against the Johnstown Chiefs! Feel free to e-mail me at trentontitans@yahoo.com if you plan on attending either game.

NORTHERN CONFERENCE / NORTHEAST DIVISION There has been little movement in standings in the Northeast with each team posting a .500 record or better for December. The Richmond Renegades remain atop the division with a 22-7-1 record after a 8-3-1 month. Center Ryan Kraft (20 goals, 27 assists in 25 games) has been leading the offense, piling up the ECHL awards, while Sean Matile has been providing strong goaltending (15-4-1 2.47 .915) for Richmond. In second place by percentage, we find the Roanoke Express (19-8-4) following a 7-3-1 month. Daniel Berthiaume (9-4-3 2.08 .930) is providing strong netminding as Roanoke battles for the division lead. Lingering near the top of the pack, the Hampton Roads Admirals are off to a 20-11-2 start (7-5-1 in December). All-Star goaltender Jan Lasak (16-8-2 2.60 .915) is doing his best to give Hampton Roads a final shot at another Championship in the ECHL. At arms length from the dogfight, the expansion Trenton Titans have a franchise record of 14-12-3 after their first month in the black (6-4-0). They need to find a way to win on the road to catch up with the true contenders. Struggling to launch a playoff quest, the Charlotte Checkers have a fifth place record of 12-16-3 after a 5-5-3 month. A reliable goaltender will be needed for the Checkers to earn a playoff bid. The Greensboro Generals managed to break even for the month (7-7-2), but remain in the Northeast Division basement with a 11-21-2 overall record. The Generals also have the distinction of having the league's highest penalty minutes per game average at 35.9 minutes and the most goals allowed at 4.74 per game.

NORTHERN CONFERENCE / NORTHWEST DIVISION The ranks remained relatively static in the Northwest as well. The Peoria Rivermen remain a cut above the pack with an 18-8-3 season record following a 6-4-2 month, despite having the ECHL's worst power play (13.0 percent). Peoria has a well-balanced team that finds ways to win. The Huntington Blizzard kept pace behind the Rivermen with an identical December record to finish 1999 at 16-11-7. Their success comes despite having the league's worst attendance (2,166 per game). In third place, the Dayton Bombers slipped a bit due to a 6-8-1 month. The efforts of center Jamie Ling (14 goals, 29 assists in 32 games) and the rest of the offense are undermined by shaky goaltending. Rounding out the current playoff bid list for the Northern Conference, the Johnstown Chiefs occupy fourth place with a 14-12-4 record following a 5-3-3 December. Johnstown will need to keep up that pace to end a four year playoff drought. Gaining momentum in the wrong direction, a 3-6-2 month has sunk the Toledo Storm deeper into fifth place. A lethargic offense is the main culprit for Toledo's woes, which could see the Storm sit out the post-season for the first time in franchise history. Meanwhile, a 6-6-1 showing has failed to lift the Wheeling Nailers out of the Northwest cellar. Wheeling needs to find a netminder that can stop the puck if they want to salvage any hope for the playoffs.

SOUTHERN CONFERENCE / SOUTHEAST DIVISION The top two teams in the Southeast also happen to be the top two in the league. The Greenville Grrrowl (23-5-2) turned up the heat with a 9-1-2 month, but the 22-5-1 Pee Dee Pride are keeping pace after a 9-2 December. The Grrrowl have the league's best attendace with an average of 8,017 fans per game, and a phenomenal road record of 13-3-1. Pee Dee features the league's best special teams units with a 26.1 power play and 89.5 penalty kill. Both teams are making a strong run at the ECHL's record for best winning percentage, which the Pride missed by .001 last season. Making tracks to join the Grrrowl and Pride, an 11-2 record has put the sophomore Florida Everblades (22-8-0) into third place with a bullet. Florida has yielded a league's stingiest 2.13 goals per game thanks to a pair of awesome goaltenders in Jeff Maund (10-1 1.97 .927) and Marc Magliarditi (12-7 2.24 9.25). Seemingly miles behind the terrific trio, the South Carolina Stingrays (15-13-4) finished the year with a dismal 3-7-2 December. They will likely remain adrift in the vast space between the trio the sub-.500 contigent of the division. In fifth place after a 6-4-1 month, the Jacksonville Lizard Kings are trying to slither back into the playoff picture. Goaltender Ray LeBlanc is far removed from his glory days, and can not compensate for the fragile defense. In a state of breakdown, the Tallahassee Tiger Sharks (10-17-4) suffered an embarassing 2-10-3 December to drop to sixth place in the division. It's a safe bet that Tallahassee will be golfing for a third straight season when the playoff invitations are delivered. Peaking out of the Southeast basement, a 5-7-1 month gives the Augusta Lynx (10-21-2) a ray of hope for climbing out of last place but offers little optimism for another playoff bid. Augusta's defense and goaltenders are far too charitable for wins to pile up.

SOUTHERN CONFERENCE / SOUTHWEST DIVISION The Southwest remains tightly packed with only a one or two point gap between the top five teams in the standings. The 19-9-4 Birmingham Bulls defended their division lead with a 8-4-1 December performance. The Bulls' charge is lead by one of the league's most fearsome offenses, but undermined by inadequate goaltending. The Louisiana IceGators (17-12-6) posted a 6-5-4 mark to remain a close second by points. Center John Spoltore is running away with the ECHL point lead with 12 goals and 47 assists in 35 games. Louisiana has sufferred a steep decline in average attendance (from 9,857 last season to 7,665 this season), which I'm sure only coincidentally mirrors a sharp drop in penalty minutes. Meanwhile, a 7-5-1 month keeps the Mobile Mysticks (18-11-2) within striking distance. They have the league's most powerful offense, averaging 4.23 goals per game. The Baton Rouge Kingfish benefited from a 7-3-1 month to improve to 17-10-3 on the season. Jon Sturgis (19 goals, 22 assists in 30 games) leads a very capable Kingfish attack that could use a tightened defense for a run at the division lead. The Pensacola Ice Pilots (17-13-2) are shaking off a sluggish start with a 9-4-2 performance in December. They have been squeaky clean with a league low of 14.9 penalty minutes per game. Holding down the fort in sixth place (by points), the New Orleans Brass have a 16-11-3 record after an 8-5-1 month. The Brass lack the offense to challenge the division leaders but should have enough gas in the tank to return to the playoffs. The Jackson Bandits are making waves in the Southwest Division after a 7-3-2 December and a 15-3-3 season tally. Goaltender David Brumby (13-12-3 2.77 .920) has done an excellent job compensating for a low-key offense. Despite a 6-4-1 month, the defending Kelly Cup Champion Mississippi Sea Wolves are falling behind the rest of the pack at 13-16-2 (eighth place). They need to stop worrying about defending the Cup and just focus on winning games. Off to a horrid franchise start (on the pace for an ECHL record), the Arkansas RiverBlades have fallen to 6-26-3 after a brutal 3-11-2 month. The problem is pretty fundamental: the Blades score a league low 2.34 goals per game while surrendering a second worst 4.66 goals per game, making pretty hard to scavenger for wins. They won't budge from the deepest basement in the ECHL.

The Columbia Inferno is set to join the ECHL for the 2001/2002 season! Columbia, South Carolina's entry into the East Coast Hockey League has chosen the nickname "Inferno". The Inferno and the Atlantic City, New Jersey reincarnation of the Hampton Roads Admirals are slated to join the league for the 2001/2002 season. The Hampton Roads Admirals conclude play in the ECHL this season while the owners start an AHL franchise next season. The ECHL franchise that they own will remain inactive for a season before beginning play at Atlantic City's Boardwalk Convention Center (home of the Miss America Pageant). It has yet to be decided whether the "Admirals" name will go with the AHL franchise in Norfolk, Virginia (Hampton Roads) or the ECHL franchise in Atlantic City. Additional ECHL expansion franchises are in the works for Bridgeport, Connecticut and Reading, Pennsylvania but no start date has been confirmed yet for either franchise.

Thunder on Ice? Sports transactions in newspapers around the country recently reported that the Trenton Thunder signed Lance Perschau as an emergency backup goaltender. Is this a new approach to baseball for the Thunder? Perschau, of course, was one of five emergency backups used by the Trenton Titans so far this season.

Mr. All-Star Louisiana IceGators defenseman Chris Valicevic will be playing in his sixth ECHL All-Star Game on January 19th. He debuted in the league in 1993 with the Greensboro Monarchs and has been selected for the All-Star Game in all but one of his ECHL seasons. No other player selected this year has appeared more than twice.

Wild Wild West Think the East Coast Hockey League can get rowdy at times? In the West Coast Hockey League, even the coaches brawl on the ice! On December 30th, San Diego Gulls coach Steve Martinson was involved in a fight on the ice with Phoenix Mustangs forward John Badduke during the warmup before the third period. The bench clearing brawl that ensued caused the suspension of the game. Badduke has been suspended indefinitely for instigating the brawl, while Martinson received a three game suspension and fine for his part. Additional fines and suspensions were issued to other players involved in the melee.

Wild Wild West, Part Deux Okay, so the WCHL was a day late and a head coach short. On December 29th in the United Hockey League, Port Huron Border Cats head coach Greg Puhalski and Flint Generals head coach Doug Shedden (both former ECHL coaches) had a brawl of their own. Shedden reportedly took exception to comments attributed to Puhalski several days earlier about Port Huron players being "cowards" and "divers". The two coaches exchanged punches after the December 29th game (in which the Border Cats prevailed 5-4 over the Generals) but maintain that there is no ongoing animosity between them. Shedden served a three-game suspension for instigating while Puhalski received a two-day sentence. Ironically, Shedden and Puhalski were named coach and assistant coach of the East All-Stars for the UHL's All-Star Game on February 2nd.